They Were Running Towards Hope
by Spinder-UndeadBallerina
Summary: Sometimes running away isn't the cowardly thing to do... Set during the X3 battle. ArclightOC


sorry this goes a little fast. i was so excited when i got the idea that i just had to write it out. i guess i got a little ahead of myself, though, haha. i hope you enjoy it anyway. more to come

by the way, if you don't know who arclight is, don't feel bad. she wasn't really one of the main characters (i think they said her name...once in the entire movie). she was the one with the curl in the middle of her forehead. she did that kick-ass clap that sent out a shockwave and destroyed all the plastic guns...? sounding familiar...?

* * *

"Christ," Ricky breathed as he flung himself behind a wall of rubble. Something sharp whizzed past his ear, but he didn't bother to see what it was. "What the hell am I doing here…?"

He leaned his head back against the cold stone, closed his eyes, and breathed deep, trying to ignore the sounds of anger and death around him.

He and his sister were going to visit their parents this weekend. In fact, they should have been on the plane right now. Their parents would come, wait for them outside the gate for hours…But in the end, the couple would realize that their children hadn't come.

Ricky's face contorted at the thought of disappointing them, giving them even more trouble after they had loved and supported him through all that had happened to him as a child. His…mutation…

"What the hell am I doing here!" Ricky asked again, angrily, beating the ground with his fist and creating a crater in the ground with the small shockwave that issued from his hand. "What the hell am I doing here…"

"Savin' the world, kid," was the answer. Ricky's eyes shot open to see Wolverine towering above him, claws extended and covered in blood. The man's face was covered in soot and grit. "Now get back out there, we're already outnumbered as it is. It doesn't help to have you breakin' for teatime."

"Where's Ria?" Ricky asked as he reluctantly rose to his feet.

"In the lab, I think," Wolverine said, giving Ricky a nudge with his elbow. "Don't sweat it, kid. Your sister can take care of herself."

Ricky didn't know why he had asked; he already knew she was dead. Because they were twins, and mutants as well, they had always had a special connection that allowed them to sense where the other was at all times. Try as he might, Ricky couldn't pick up her consciousness. He had yelled and screamed in his mind for her, but no answer came.

Ricky walked out into the battle again. It was all flames and darkness now. He didn't want to fight anymore. Ria was dead, so there wasn't anything else to live for. Ricky tried to relax as he waited for death. Standing out in the open like that, there was no way he couldn't be attacked.

Just as he expected, a blow hit him from behind, and he fell to the ground, hoping it had been enough to kill him.

_Just my luck, _he thought as he opened his eyes, still very much alive. A hand reached down and picked him up by the scruff of his neck. He thought it might be Wolverine helping him back up, telling him to go and fight, to do things that no seventeen-year-old should ever have to do. In a daze, Ricky looked up and saw the stern face, the harsh black eyes, the single dark curl in the middle of a forehead. He knew he shouldn't be pleased to be in the hands of the enemy, but he was. She was the one who was like him; he had seen the shockwaves she could send out with just a clap of her hands. He wanted to ask her if she ever lost control of her powers like he did, if she had ever shattered anyone's bones by accident, too… He wanted to confide in the one person he thought could possibly understand, but it was never meant to be.

"…'S'like Romeo and Juliet," he muttered aloud. Arclight pulled back in surprise, but regained her severe attitude with new vigor.

"What'd you say?" she asked threateningly, shaking him slightly.

"You an' me," Ricky explained, "We're more similar than you think."

"Don't insult me, scumbag!" Arclight hissed, "Besides a coupla genes, we got _nothin'_ in common! You're a traitor to your own kind!"

"Maybe," Ricky conceded, finally coming back to his senses, "But I bet I'm the only other person you know who can do this."

Ricky sent a shockwave of energy through his foot and into the ground under Arclight, sending her flying.

_I don't want to hurt you,_ Ricky thought, flinching as she hit the ground. He kept the sentiment to himself, though. As far as he knew, it would only make her angrier. _I just want a friend who understands…_

Rather than attacking her while she was down, Ricky waited for her to stand before walking calmly over to her. She eyed him apprehensively, holding mixed emotions behind her warrior façade. He was like her. She was like him. Why were they fighting…?

In a flash, Arclight's hands were wrapped around Ricky's neck.

_Because I don't want to be normal! _her mind screamed fiercely as her grip tightened. Instinctually, Ricky's own hands reached up to her arms, ready to send a blast of energy through them, but he stopped himself. Some part of her had to feel the same way as he did.

"You…would kill me…?" Ricky wheezed, attempting a lopsided grin.

"Yes."

"Juliet…"

"Stop it!"

"She…killed herself…"

"I said _stop!"_

"…Not…Romeo…"

"_You're not my Romeo!" _Arclight shrieked, but tears stung the corners of her eyes, and her hands loosened enough for Ricky to breathe. She lowered her head in despair as they both sank to the ground.

"…Let's leave…" Ricky whispered. His eyes were closed and he was breathing heavily.

"Leave…?"

Arclight sucked her lip and sniffed, looking back and forth from Ricky to the chaos around them.

"I can't," she said shakily, "I can't! I can't! I'm fighting for this! I believe in this!"

"Do you?"

"I- I believe in this…" Arclight repeated quietly, but for the first time, she wasn't sure. "We're enemies…I don't know why I don't just kill you now!"

"In all honesty, neither do I," Ricky said uncertainly, "But I think…I think maybe it's because your conscience is telling you what's _really _the right thing to do…"

"This _is _the right thing to do!" Arclight bristled, "Those humans are killing us! They're stealing our gifts! They deserve to die!"

"They're scared," Ricky said, "People do weird things when they're scared." He laughed humorlessly. "That's pretty much why I found out I was a mutant."

Arclight stared at the boy in front of her. His brown hair hung in his eyes, he smiled, but his face was tense. She realized with a start that she wanted to see him the way he really was, no scratches across his dirtied face, no tenseness in his brow. She wanted to see him _happy_.

"…I'm scared, too," she said finally. "I want to fight for what I believe…but I don't want to die."

"Neither do I," Ricky said. He opened his eyes. "If we're going to leave, we only have one shot at it. Whaddya say, my Juliet?" he grinned, "Let's get outta here."

Arclight nodded decisively. She didn't even know his name…

"We have to pretend like we're still fighting," Ricky told her sternly, "Otherwise someone'll suspect something. We'll make our way over there-" he pointed to a pile of wrecked cars- "and once we're out of sight, we'll slip off across the bridge. Got it?"

"Yeah," Arclight said breathlessly. Ricky held her hand tight for a moment.

"Don't worry," he said, smiling, "We'll make it out of here. Now let's go!"

They ran out into the battle again, sending wave after wave of energy at each other, their attacks purposely missing their targets. Ricky chanced a look around to assess the damage to his own team. He saw Wolverine and Storm amidst the pandemonium, and caught a glimpse of Bobby sending a blast of ice at an advancing foe.

_That's it, huh? _He thought sadly, _Three out of eight left. But I can't turn back now._

_I must be insane! _Arclight berated herself mentally, _I have no idea who he is!...But he's gonna get me out of here. _

She didn't know why she trusted him so much. They were fighting on opposite sides, they held opposite opinions, and yet there was an honesty in his eyes that Arclight couldn't help but be attracted to.

_To Hell with which side we were on! _Arclight finally decided. _We're on our own side now._

With a final shockwave, Ricky and Arclight were safely behind the wreckage, panting and gripping each other's hand so hard that they had to ignore the pain.

"Are you ready to leave it all behind?" Ricky asked.

"More ready than I've ever been in my life," Arclight replied certainly.

"On three, then."

"One," they whispered in unison.

Flaming wreckage flew through the air.

"Two-"

Explosions and cries of pain issued from behind them as they pulled themselves onto their haunches and prepared to run.

"Three!"

Hand in hand, they sprinted out from their hiding place and along the bridge, using the disarray of cars to help conceal them in their escape. Three-fourths of the way across the bridge, they collapsed in a tired heap behind a large SUV.

"We're in the homestretch now," Ricky panted.

Arclight looked up suddenly. "Do you have any money?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Enough for two subway tickets out of here?"

Ricky smiled. "I certainly hope so."

"What are we waiting for, then?" Arclight asked as she helped Ricky up. "We're almost there."


End file.
